Mr. Speaker, this is what the member for Lac-Saint-Louis recently said about his own government, and I quote, “Being on the backbench we are all typecast as if we were all stupid. We are just supposed to be voting machines”. Well, hopes for real parliamentary reform were dashed in this latest throne speech when the Prime Minister's promise was electronic voting.
Electronic voting will not reform parliament because it is not how fast MPs vote that counts. MPs want to vote freely without pressure from the Prime Minister's office.
Will the Prime Minister take meaningful steps to allow his own backbenchers to vote not just faster but freer on government legislation?